Meet the Brooklyn Creative Earning Hundreds of Dollars Per Month Renting Out His Unused Equipment

Disclosure: Fat Llama is a trusted marketing partner of Bushwick Daily. As such, we have agreed that signups from the affiliate links in this article will result in a financial commission from the company to Bushwick Daily.

Angely Mercado

angely@bushwickdaily.com

Neighborhoods like Bushwick are homes to all kinds of creatives. And being a creative who makes their living from art, podcasting, writing, filmmaking, and more takes an array of equipment.

And though a lot of creatives use a decent amount of their tools on a regular basis, there’s oftentime some equipment lying around that doesn’t get used as often. Weeks might even go by before it’s picked up again for a new project.

Thanks to Fat Llama, all kinds of freelancers and creatives can rent out any equipment that they don’t use very often. Things like lenses, tripods or cameras aren’t lying around collecting dust and renters get the chance to try out something before they buy it themselves, or find a cheap way to get their own assignments out of the way without the high cost or committment.

@Fat_llama_llt Instagram

Tim Slater, a representative from Fat Llama outlined these important details about the service:

Fat Llama is the world’s only insurance-backed marketplace for lending and borrowing anything. We connect people with spare stuff to those that want to use it.

There’s also a 24/7 customer service support in the case that something is stolen, lost, broken or if there are any other questions about the service. Fat Llama also has an online section that details how to get started with renting equipment and ways to know if you are eligible to rent.

Don’t just take Slater’s word for it. Adam Wienberg, a New York based director of photography who makes hundreds of dollars a month renting equipment to all kinds of filmmakers. He briefly told Bushwick Daily what it’s like for him to rent things via Fat Llama (he also said he’d throw in a 10 percent discount for anyone who mentions this post):

What made you decide to sign up to rent stuff on Fat Llama?

I first heard of Fat Lama when a fellow DP mentioned the amount of money he was making renting out his equipment when it was sitting around unused - it sounded like a no brainer.

How do you use the service?

I usually just rent out my equipment to other filmmakers, but when I occasionally need gear I don’t own for a job, Fat Lama is the first place I check to rent - equipment owners don’t have the overhead of traditional brick and mortar rental shops, so they’re able to offer much more competitive rental rates.

Did you have any reservations about renting things out?

I was initially worried that people would not take good care of my gear, but most filmmakers that use Fat Lama seem to treat gear as though it was their own.

What is the process for getting paid through the system like?

Once the signup process is complete and you’ve linked your account to your bank account, you don’t even need to think about getting paid - everything is automatic and behind the scenes.

Is there a wait period for getting payments or deposits?

Payments are deposited more quickly on Fat Lama than any of the other peer-to-peer rental sites I’ve used.

Was there a step that you didn't expect?

There were certain steps during the verification process that I didn’t expect; I was initially frustrated by the hoops it felt like I had to jump through, but it later occurred to me how how much more secure it made the process of renting out my equipment.

Are there any protections in the case that something is misplaced or stolen when it's rented out?

Everything on Fat Lama is insured by their service.

If someone was on the fence about using Fat Llama to rent things out, how would you explain the benefits?

I would tell them that you have little to lose but a lot to potentially gain by renting out your equipment when it’s just sitting around.